Hi – On July 1, 2009 I am making another edit to this recipe and adding nutritional values (at the end). Enjoy!
I have continued to tweak the granola recipe that I posted a few months ago, so here is the updated version. I’ll offer my comments after the recipe.
Healthy Homemade Granola
Dry Ingredients:
6 cups rolled oats (you can also use a combination of rolled grains)
2 cups of raw almonds and/or walnuts (or other nuts)
½ cup raw pumpkin seeds (or sunflower seeds)
½ cup sesame seeds or flax seed
½ cup wheat germ or ground flax seed.
Optional: ½ cup unsweetened coconut,
½ cup dried fruit (add after cooked) –date pieces, cranberries, cherries, apricots, mango
2 individual cup unsweetened applesauce (about 1 cup total)
1/3 cup agave nectar (or brown rice syrup, honey or maple syrup)
2 Tablespoons extra virgin olive oil
1 Tablespoon ground cinnamon
1 Tablespoon ground ginger
½ tsp salt
Preheat the oven to 300°F.
Mix the dry ingredients in a large bowl. Mix the wet ingredients together, and then stir into dry ingredients. Stir well to mix thoroughly.
Spread the mixture into two baking dishes. Bake for 35 – 40 minutes, or until evenly golden brown. Stir every 10 – 15 minutes to ensure even browning. If you use fruit, stir once it is cooled. Store in the refrigerator.
Most granola recipes are pretty high in sugar – with up to 1 ½ cups of sweeteners in various forms. In this recipe I have cut out the brown sugar entirely and just use a small amount (1/3 cup) of agave or honey. I think it is plenty sweet.
Agave nectar is primarily fructose. There are concerns about fructose. Even though it doesn’t raise blood sugar, because it can be absorbed without insulin it bypasses the usual internal control systems. Most of the studies on this have been conducted with High Fructose Corn Syrup. A different animal in my opinion.
You could substitute honey, but that is primarily fructose as well. An advantage of honey is the additional nutrients it may contain. But what I like about using agave is that it is so easy. Agave doesn’t harden like honey does and it blends more easily.
I think the most important point is to eat as little sugar, in any of its forms, as you can. Sweetness is a taste that we become accustomed to, which means it is possible to get used to food being less sweet. When you only have a little sugar, the source is less important.
Keep in mind that the whole flax seed is a good source of fiber, but the omega-3 fats are not assessable (although they are in the ground flax seed). If you want to know more about flax seed and omega-3 fatty acids, I have an article on my website called “Fishing for Omega-3’s”.
The applesauce in this recipe is a way to add moisture and keep the fat content low. Because of all the nuts and seeds, the total fat content is not low, but it is all healthy monounsaturated fats.
I’m indebted to Molly and her blog Orangette, for her recipe that I modified and the idea of using applesauce in cups. That makes it easy to just use what you need without opening a large jar.
The recipe calls for salt. I left it out one time and was surprised at the flatness. I never salt cooked oatmeal or steel cut oats, so I didn’t think it would be needed here. But it does seem to make a difference. At least it is a small amount, although it does add up at100 – 140 mg of sodium per 1 cup serving of granola.
So far, I have only added fruit to my batch of granola once. I generally prefer adding it when I eat it. During the spring and summer fresh fruit is available. Then, when that is gone, I add dried cranberries or dried blueberries to my bowl. When I add it directly, I know I’m getting a full serving of fruit.
Nutritional values: each 1/2 cup of granola contains
232 calories
7 grams protein
12.7 grams fat (most of this is from the nuts and seeds)
25 grams carbohydrate, of which 6 grams comes from sugar
4.4 grams fiberFor me 3/4 cup is a good serving size, especially by time I add a little plain yogurt, soy milk and fruit.
This is based on granola made with equal parts walnuts and almonds, either honey or agave (calorically they are about the same), and no added fruit or coconut. You could reduce both calories and fat by reducing the amount of nuts and seeds.
Hope you enjoy the granola. Eat it in good health!
Find more nutrition information and my monthly newsletter on my website: http://healthyhabitscoach.com .
Eat well!
I made the granola yeasterday, it’s delicious!! It reminds me of the stuff my mom used to make when i was a little girl. Do you have nutritional info? I am a diabetic, and count carbs for insulin needs, and am trying to gauge how many carbs for a half cup or whole cup?
Hi Kate – I’m so glad you liked it! I have not calculated the recipe, although that is a good idea. It is much lower in sugar than the standard recipes, with just 1/3 cup of agave instead of the 1 1/2 cups of sweetening that is more typical.
A very rough estimate would be 25-30 grams of carb per cup. That is without fruit added. Alot of the bulk here is from seeds and nuts – which are low carb.
Kathy
Did you have any problems with the granola browning too much? I was debating lowering the temp and increasing the cooking time with the agave.
My oven does tend to brown (or burn) things at the higher temperatures, but I don’t have problems when the granola is cooked at 300 degrees. The last time I made it I used a higher temp and it did brown too quickly. Cooking it longer at a lower temperature does seem like a good idea. You may also want to see where your pans are placed relative to the heat source.
Ovens seem to loose their temperature calibration – you can put a thermometer in the oven to see what the real temperature is.
Good luck!
I wasn’t so much worried about the temp calibration (my oven was tested when I bought the house) but the fact that agave burns faster than honey and sugar). I dropped the temp 25 degrees and cooked it for another 15 minutes and that worked well! I did rotate the two cookies sheets every 20 minutes as well!
That is good to know – I didn’t realize that agave cooked differently. Thanks for sharing that.
Hi,
I’m trying to avoid canola oil. Have you found any good alternatives to it for your granola? I’m thinking of trying olive oil but not sure if it would taste right.
Thanks a lot.
I’m thinking of trying olive oil too – but haven’t yet. I use olive oil in nearly everything else and it does cook at a low temperature.
The other alternative – and one that would taste great – is coconut oil. Coconut oil is neutral in terms of cholesterol and affecting our arteries, but it is a saturated fat and as such can make our cell membranes more ridgid. However, based on my current understanding, it seems like a reasonable option in moderation.
The third option is to skip the oil entirely. The applesauce adds moisture, so the oil may not be necessary.
I’d better get busy and let you know the results!
Kathy
Hi, This past weekend I made granola with 5 cups rolled oats, about 4 tablespoons olive oil, and a cup of applesauce. It came out great…. the olive oil worked fine with no funny taste. The applesauce helped sweeten it a little. I added raisins after I took it out of the oven. No sugar or other sweeteners so it wasn’t as sweet as typical granola, but it still tasted great.
bob
PS I ccoked it at 275 for an hour.
Hi when would you add the coconut befor or after the baking thanks!!!
I’ve always added it before baking (although most times I leave it out). It probably would be fine before or after.
I’m making the granola on monday for my girlfriend and me. We love granola but have found it to be to expensive and just not that good in the store.
Hi,
I made granola with pumpkin seeds, almonds, sesame seeds, etc. Do you think it would work out if I use splenda as a sweetener? How do I get it ‘lumpy’?
Hi Walterine,
I think it would turn out just fine with splenda. Are you sure you want to do that? One of the things that concerns me about sugar substitutes (besides the fact that I think safety is questionable) is that they are so sweet. They make you get used to having very sweet food. The recipe doesn’t call for much sweetening to start with, but if you don’t want to use sugar, maybe try adding fruit when you eat it for a little sweetness.
One way to get it lumpy is to not stir it when you take it out of the oven. A little more fat will also help it lump more.
Kathy
Made The granola last week and it was a hit. i never added any fruit i just top my yougurt with it and relax. I used brown rice syurp and it was great.
Hi Mark – sounds good! I like mine with yogurt too.
Kathy
Hello! How long will this keep?
Good question. I keep mine in the refrigerator, and this last time it has lasted a month and still tastes good. I think the main problem would be the seeds and nuts getting stale.
Would you be able to store this granola at room temp in a ziplock bag?
Hi Mary,
It would depend on what you put in it. I’m not concerned about food poisoning, but it has alot of polyunsaturated oils that are likely to oxidize. Flax seed, in particular, doesn’t last long once it is ground. Wheat germ would probably last a little longer. Those two ingredients give it a shelf life. You could just add a little as you eat them or leave them out if you want to store it at room temp.The whole flax seed isn’t a problem – but you don’t get the omega-3 fats from them until they are ground.
Kathy
Thats good to know about whole vs. ground flax seed. (will have to start grinding
)… I store mine in a ziplock in the freezer and just keep filling a small box that i keep in the fridge. I’ve had it for 4.5 months and it’s still great!
Great recipe for granola…Thanks…
How about using cinnamon…I will try it later today…
Jean Riggs
Hi Jean,
The recipe includes a tablespoon of cinnamon. Put in as much as you like – cinnamon is one of the extra-healthy spices. It helps with blood sugar maitenance and insulin resistance. I love the flavor of cinnamon and use it liberally. But at some point it becomes overpowering – so you may want to experiment with how much is enough and what is too much.
When I add a teaspoon to my 1 cup serving of oatmeal it is inedible. I’m thinking around 1/4 tsp per 1 cup serving could be the upper limit – less if you prefer a more subtle presense.
Let me know what you try and how it works out.
Kathy